Role of latency in health : Why Viral Infections?

Incubation period is the time elapsed between triggering event time, and when symptoms and signs are first apparent.

Kuru is an incurable degenerative neurological disorder endemic to tribal regions of Papua New Guinea. Incubation period is around 14 years! Cancer cases also exhibit long latency / Incubation time – 1 year to 11 years.

So if someone tests new drug or farm chemicals for 2-3 months or couple of years and conclude safety, it is nothing but utter neglect of nature’s law i.e. Latency or incubation.

That is where common sense helps.

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There is a type of virus called latent virus – A nonactive virus which is in a dormant state within a cell. Herpes virus is latent in cells of the nervous system.

“Latency” means that the virus, once burrowing into some cells of yours, goes into hibernation for a while, just lurking near your own cellular DNA, but not yet replicating itself. At some later point, something triggers the dormant virus out of latency and it reactivates. After going through a couple of rounds of replication the by now larger number of viral particles burrow in and go latent again.

This is classic example that Virus is impotent to cause illness. It is internal environment of the cell and external environmental conditions that triggers prolific replication of specific message i.e. Virus.

Such events (benign viral infections triggered naturally and not due to stress) in children are necessary. They indicate their development. Only when environment is sterile or controlled or artificial, such event lapses and later in adult life, they become autoimmune disorders. If kids are not afflicted by Herpes Zoster in age below 10, next reactivation in adult life is severe and may lead to death in some cases.

So it is important for growing kids to play in the laps of mother nature. Living life in natural environment triggers all developmental milestones on time. Artificial urban environment, over-use of chemicals to clean the homes mar the development.